Gaga over gadgets: Adjustable spurs

I ordered  a pair of spurs that I'm interested in trying --  Flip'n Go spurs from Centaur.  I've always wondered why someone hadn't invented spurs with adjustable length, and here is a pair that comes close. I bought these from  tackshopofaustin.com, and I got the  easy-care rubber spur straps from Bit of Britain for $10.  Here is a photo sequence of how they work...

Out of the box...

Here they look pretty sleek, and they aren't harshwith that bulbous end. Note the base is thicker to accommodate the mechanism inside.

 

Another View...

Top down...

 

The mechanism -- it works on a spring, and you just move the protruding piece a little bit toward the spring and release to pull the spur piece down...

Here I'm engaging the spring and pushing the spur down. I could easily do this while mounted. The instructions say to were spurs so that you are pulling the spur toward the horse to disengage it (so that it isn't accidentally disengaged when you apply the spur).

These spurs were well-reviewed on the Chronicle of the Horse forums, but they did say you have to keep the mechanism clean.

Voila. If your horse doesn't need them they are out of the way.

Another view...